By Zack Cimini

　notjustagame23@gmail.com

Running backs rule fantasy football leagues and are snatched up like deals on black Friday. Some owners have strategize other avenues to throw drafts for a loop and find themselves buried. Everyone knows the drill but securing the correct backs is the hard part. Last year saw some backs disappoint in great lengths. Who will those backs be this year?

1. Chris Johnson- A new deal will be in his hands soon. Will he regress from last season or continue to super charge Vince Young and the Titans offense? In the open field Johnson is not going to be touched. Fantasy owners that get additional bonus points on touchdowns of long distance are going to be able to bank on an additional 20-30 points alone in that category.

2. Adrian Peterson- His fumbling woes can not be overlooked but he is a young back that is still growing. Sometimes he is too aggressive or careless with the ball and that’s what has caused his collapse. The Vikings and Peterson know they have a great chance of being right back to the NFC championship game and finishing off what they did last year. Adding to that fuel is the fact that Peterson needs to show the world he can sidestep last seasons miscues and reprove himself.

3. Maurice Jones-Drew- The bowling ball keeps hurling himself like old school sonic the hedgehog spinning forward. He possesses it all, an ability to burst through holes, bounce off defenders and use his core strength to be one of the best little guy goal line backs that has been in the league in years. Jacksonville’s nucleus’s offensively does worry us a tad but Jones-Drew is one of the few backs in the league that is not in a share system in the backfield. He can be counted on to get the same amount of touches every game, which translates to happy fantasy owners.

4. Ray Rice- He was the spark that catapulted the Ravens to dangerous heights last year. He is sort of just like Jones-Drew but with a faster notch of speed to his game. Unlike Jones-Drew though Rice has too share carries with Willis McGahee and McClain. Baltimore was smart enough to get Rice more involved as the year goes on. With a full sixteen games to show his value Rice could be the gem of this years draft and number one next year.

5. Frank Gore- Gore is just that consistent back like Curtis Martin use to be. Nothing flashy but he seems to stick around the elite backs year after year. Last year he showed a toughness side of himself by fighting through an injury and only missing limited action. He did go through a rut on the field because of it but finished out the year strong when he was healthy. He reached double digit touchdowns for the first time in his career which gets him into the top five instead of bottom ten.

6. Steven Jackson- It’s hard for us to watch Jackson’s talent fade away on a team that is going nowhere. Jackson will have the weight on his shoulders to carry a rookie quarterback and a team with zero identity. He’ll garner the most eight man boxes in the league until Bradford shows strong enough capabilities to warrant not. Jackson may see a continued decline in touchdowns but his yards will always be there. Combining out of the backfield from short yardage dumps he should easily get between 1500-1750 yards total rushing/receiving.

7. Michael Turner- In most leagues Turner is going to be the first round pick someone does not want. It’s the pick where you have to draft for value than what you anticipate. Turner had a rough go in his second year with Atlanta as we predicted. At 28 he is still relatively young as far as mileage goes for a running back. That means his injury plagued 2009 season should not be so alarming. He should bounce back and is on an offense that is heavily loaded.

8. Ryan Matthews- Big shoes to fill for Matthews and expectations are set sky high. Early on San Diego may use Sproles a little more than they will as the season carries on, just so Matthews can ease in. Once that first breakout game happens which could be week one, Sproles will be relegated to a third down back. Playing with Philip Rivers sounds good in all, but if he misses a blocked assignment how will he handle Rivers barking in his face?

9. Rashard Mendenhall- Mendenhall stole the show from Willie Parker and made it easy for the Steelers to let Parker exit. Mendenhall gets to be the main option for the Steelers offense for the first six weeks with Ben Roethlisberger suspended. That means an extra five to ten carries a game to keep the hands out of Dennis Dixon’s hands. Those goal line touchdowns that ticked fantasy owners off last year from Ben Roethlisberger will be touchdowns for Mendenhall.

10. Ryan Grant- There is no discounting what Grant did last season. You just can not keep him out of the top ten based on how he complements Aaron Rodgers. Fantasy owners still may be hesitant on him as he started the year so slow and piled up numbers late. He scored more than half of his touchdowns (6) in the last four weeks of the season. Green Bay has one of the best if not best receiver sets in the league which makes huge holes for Grant. The emergence of tight end/split end Jermichael Finley makes Grant’s end of season push likely to carry over into 2010.

11. Shonn Greene- There will be carries a plenty for the Jets as they try to protect Mark Sanchez. It’ll be interesting to see how the percentages of carries are split up between Greene and LT, especially in the red zone. Greene took over Thomas Jones job in the playoffs even though Jones had been a heck of a back for the Jets. We anticipate Greene to be a fantasy friendly bright spot as Jets backs have been since the Curtis Martin days.

12. Jamaal Charles- Behind Chris Johnson, Jamaal Charles is probably the second best as a home run back in the NFL. We told you to scoop Charles up off the waiver wire weeks before the saga began and ended with Larry Johnson. Charles has another veteran to deal with in Thomas Jones, but do not let that worry you.

13. DeAngelo Williams- Williams hopes he can stay healthy a full season and re-enter the top ten for fantasy backs. It is definitely in reach. There is no questioning that the Panthers still have the best one-two punch of a backfield in the NFL. If Stewart were not such a high threat to split carries Williams would be a top five back. It’s remarkable that he tastes the end zone as frequently as he does.

14. Beanie Wells- What Ken Whisenhunt did last year with the Cardinals running back situation was similar to an old veteran getting playing time just because of his stature. Tim Hightower is not a number one running back, but Whisenhunt refused to give the job to Wells. He flirted with it later on in the year and that’s when the Cardinals started coming to life again. Wells will get his carries this season and should gain near 1200 yards rushing. The only glaring issue with Wells was him being prone to fumbling the football.

15. Cedric Benson- Talk about a transformation no one saw coming. After seeing his career dwindling to the point of no return to the NFL, Benson recommitted himself. Suddenly he was one of the top five backs in the league and was doing it consistently not just against poor defenses. He racked up two one hundred yard games against the Ravens which made the league and fans respect him once again. Last year was not a fluke and will see how his body handles coming off a year of 300 carries.

The best of the rest

16. Brandon Jacobs

17. Pierre Thomas

18. Joseph Addai

19. Knowshon Moreno

20. Ronnie Brown

21. LeSean McCoy

22. Matt Forte

23. Jahvid Best

24. Felix Jones

25. Ricky Williams

26. Jonathan Stewart

27. Reggie Bush

28. Michael Bush

29. Ahmad Bradshaw

30. Marion Barber

31. C. J. Spiller

32. LaDainian Tomlinson

33. Clinton Portis

34. Ben Tate

35. Fred Jackson

36. Jerome Harrison

37. Thomas Jones

38. Leon Washington

39. Carnell Williams

40. Tim Hightower

41. Donald Brown

42. Laurence Maroney

42. Justin Forsett

43. Darren Sproles

44. Steve Slaton

45. Montario Hardesty

46. Marshawn Lynch

47. Chester Taylor

48. Larry Johnson

49. Mike Bell

50. Glen Coffee